A communication system user in a mobile communication system occasionally performs a service request procedure which can be used to inform the system of the communication system user's current location. Location registration is required to enable the system to contact the communication system user when an incoming communication attempt is destined for the communication system user. Location registration information is also useful for billing purposes. As the communication system user moves, the communication system user must occasionally re-register with the system.
The communication system users use various devices (e.g., a cellular telephone or pager) to communicate with other communication system users within the communication system. Each communication process involves an exchange of messages between the communication system user and the system. Registration is one of these communication processes. Each registration process involves an exchange of registration messages between the communication system user and the system. These registration messages contain only information concerning particular system users and do not contain any service provider information.
In existing cellular networks which use the "Global System for Mobile Communications" standards (referred to herein as GSM) for subscriber control and network behavior, no provision has been made to allow isolated local networks supporting more than one fixed telephone set to access a communication network using procedures for efficient resource utilization. Further, no provision has been made to allow service providers who operate and control these local networks to recover costs associated with providing these isolated local networks. These isolated local networks are generally so large that to allocate a radio access resource dedicated to each fixed telephone set would be economically and physically prohibitive.
The lack of service provider information is particularly trouble-some when groups of communication system users which are located on a mobile vehicle (e.g., communication units on-board an airplane) individually register with the system. Prior-art mobile group registration procedures require each communication system user to register individually with the system but provisions were not made to register service providers with the system. This lack of service provider information results in a large amount of non-revenue generating work which has to be performed to accurately identify and compensate the service providers.
Billing in GSM systems is based on the individual subscriber and not on the equipment being used. Under certain circumstances a provisioned subscriber may be constrained to, or prefer to use equipment owned by another agency. For instance, the use of a private mobile station might be prohibited on board a commercial airliner. However, the airliner might contain equipment which could be used for connection into the Public Land Mobile Network for a usage fee. If during use of the airliner equipment the previously provisioned subscriber would prefer to maintain his/her system identity (to provide a location for incoming calls, for instance) he/she might provide the previously provisioned Subscriber Information Module (SIM) to the airliner system. If this were to occur, the billing and settlement system would be able to identify the subscriber, but the service provider which provisioned the airline and the airline identification would be masked by the previously provisioned information on the SIM.
What is needed is a method and apparatus for billing individual members of a group of communication system users who are located in a mobile vehicle. Further needed is a method and apparatus to reduce the amount of non-revenue bearing work which has to be perform to accurately identify and compensate the service providers. What is also needed is a billing methodology which allows service providers to recover costs associated with providing user access to service provider furnished communications equipment.